Washington Brief: Trump Rethinking Approach After Tough Two Weeks

Washington Brief

Internal tensions have roiled the first weeks of President Donald Trump’s White House. The West Wing, lacking staff, is quiet, say those with knowledge of the situation, and Trump has become frustrated with his administration’s messaging. (The New York Times)

Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Netflix, Twitter, Uber and many other tech companies filed a legal brief overnight opposing the Trump administration’s travel ban. (The Washington Post) Of the many pending lawsuits, one case in Seattle is looming large for the president’s rivals. (The Wall Street Journal)

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said it “is up to our Democratic friends” whether he will “go nuclear” and change the Senate’s rules in order to confirm Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Neil Gorsuch. (CNN)

Betsy DeVos, Trump’s nominee for secretary of Education, is among the names on the Senate’s list to confirm this week. If one more Republican jumps ship, her nomination is at risk of being rejected. (The Wall Street Journal)

General

Former Secretaries of State John F. Kerry and Madeline Albright, along with other former top national security officials including Leon Panetta entered the fray over President Trump’s travel ban early Monday with an unusual declaration stating that it “undermines” national security and will “endanger U.S. troops in the field.” The 6-page joint declaration was addressed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in support of the temporary order blocking implementation of Trump’s ban on entry for travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

The day after former President Barack Obama delivered his 2016 State of the Union address, Rep. Jason Chaffetz penned a letter chastising the commander in chief’s use of executive orders without working with Congress. “It is unilateral, overreaching and unconstitutional,” the Utah Republican wrote.

A handful of travelers who had been barred from entering the U.S. under an executive order by President Donald Trump began to arrive this weekend, moving through customs without incident, immigration lawyers said. The slow resumption of travel reflects the chilling effect the travel ban and the legal uncertainty surrounding the order have had, as well as the logistical difficulties of arranging for international travel quickly.

When the Islamic State identified a promising young recruit willing to carry out an attack in one of India’s major tech hubs, the group made sure to arrange everything down to the bullets he needed to kill victims. For 17 months, terrorist operatives guided the recruit, a young engineer named Mohammed Ibrahim Yazdani, through every step of what they planned to be the Islamic State’s first strike on Indian soil.

It was the kind of moment Saturday Night Live history was made of: an unannounced guest appearance so perfect that it took even the live audience a few moments to register what was actually happening. “Next, on C-SPAN, the daily White House press briefing with Press Secretary Sean Spicer,” a voiceover announced.

Presidential

President Trump loves to set the day’s narrative at dawn, but the deeper story of his White House is best told at night. Aides confer in the dark because they cannot figure out how to operate the light switches in the cabinet room.

In the 10 days since President Donald Trump handed down his executive order on immigration, plaintiffs have flooded the courts with legal challenges. As of Sunday, more than two dozen petitions and lawsuits had been filed. But for the moment, one lawsuit looms above all others, a case brought by Washington state and Minnesota filed last week in Seattle federal court.

The six biggest U.S. banks could potentially return more than $100 billion in capital to investors over time through dividends and share buybacks if the Trump administration succeeds in a push to loosen bank regulation. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a memorandum ordering a review of the Dodd-Frank Act, the postfinancial-crisis regulatory overhaul that has guided regulators such as the Federal Reserve.

Despite loudly voiced objections to its relevancy and its funding, US President Donald Trump has committed to attend a meeting of NATO leaders in Europe in May, according to the organization. Trump, who was outspoken on the campaign trail about the role — and upkeep — of the security pact, spoke with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg Sunday night.

The Trump administration is exploring ways to break Russia’s military and diplomatic alliance with Iran in a bid to both end the Syrian conflict and bolster the fight against Islamic State, said senior administration, European and Arab officials involved in the policy discussions. The emerging strategy seeks to reconcile President Donald Trump’s seemingly contradictory vows to improve relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and to aggressively challenge the military presence of Iran—one of Moscow’s most critical allies—in the Middle East, these officials say.

The Trump White House appears to have backed off for now on its consideration of reopening overseas “black site” prisons, where the C.I.A. once tortured terrorism suspects, after a leaked draft executive order prompted bipartisan pushback from Congress and cabinet officials. On Thursday, the White House circulated among National Security Council staff members a revised version of the draft order on detainees that deleted language contemplating a revival of the C.I.A. prisons, according to several officials familiar with its contents.

Senate

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Sunday distanced himself from President Donald Trump’s positions on Russia, voter fraud and the travel ban, while criticizing the president for attacking a federal judge. “It is best not to single out judges,” McConnell told Jake Tapper on CNN’s “State of the Union.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell left the door open to using the “nuclear option” and eliminate the Senate’s rule requiring 60 votes to confirm Supreme Court justices if Democrats attempt a filibuster. “I haven’t said what will happen at that point. I’m confident we will get 60 votes,” the Kentucky Republican told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” Sunday.

Betsy DeVos, President Donald Trump’s choice to be secretary of education, is at risk Tuesday of becoming the first cabinet nominee in 28 years to be rejected by the Senate, due in large part to the efforts of people like Tim Royers, a high-school history teacher from Nebraska. Named his state’s teacher of the year, Mr. Royers started organizing his fellow honorees against Mrs. DeVos when they gathered for a celebration last month in Florida.

Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., took issue Sunday with the way President Donald Trump called out the federal judge who blocked his temporary ban on immigrants and refugees from seven largely Muslim countries. George Stephanopoulos, host of ABC’s “This Week,” asked the senator about a presidential tweet stating that the “so-called judge” had issued a ridiculous order that would be overturned.

House

While the rest of the Republican establishment was in full-fledged panic that Donald Trump was marching to the nomination, Kevin McCarthy made a different calculation altogether. The “intensity” of support for Trump and his appeal to new voters could help the GOP win, the House majority leader mused in the heat of the presidential primary in March.

If President Donald Trump and Speaker Paul Ryan manage to maintain their fragile truce in the coming months, it will be partly thanks to Jonathan Burks. Ryan’s 38-year-old chief of staff is responsible for keeping the White House, the Senate and restive House Republicans united on a legislative agenda — and for avoiding any policy surprises in Trump’s tweets.

For Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Cedric L. Richmond, this month is about teaching. First celebrated in 1926 as a weeklong tribute to black history and culture and expanded to a monthlong honor in 1976, Black History Month is a time of reflection and festivity for many African-Americans.

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), confronted by calls for new leadership in the Democratic Party, says experience is just as important as having a fresh face. Pelosi, who became House minority leader in January of 2003 and served a stint as Speaker from 2007 to 2011, says there’s room for new leaders in the Democratic Party.

States

Former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley (D) has changed his stance on gerrymandering, a practice he embraced when he redrew the state’s congressional districts more than six years ago. During a speech at Boston College last month, O’Malley, who unsuccessfully sought the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, said he no longer supports partisan redistricting.

Gov. Eric Greitens on Monday will sign “right to work” legislation into law, fulfilling a campaign promise that has been cheered on by Republicans and the state’s business community. For the state’s unions, it’s a day they have been able to delay under Greitens’ predecessor, Gov. Jay Nixon, who blocked similar efforts with his veto pen and argued, with fellow Democrats, that the measure was a political ploy to weaken Missouri labor.

Two years after Gov. Scott Walker proposed cutting K-12 funding, he is moving sharply in the opposite direction, proposing a half-billion dollar bump in broad state school aid — enough for $200 per pupil increases in each of the next two years. By calling for $649 million more in state money for public and private schools, the Republican governor is all but announcing his intent to run for a third term next year.

Advocacy

Silicon Valley is stepping up its confrontation with the Trump administration. On Sunday night, technology giants Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Netflix, Twitter, Uber and many others filed a legal brief opposing the administration’s contentious entry ban, according to people familiar with the matter.

Opinions, Editorials and Perspectives

President Trump’s executive order on immigration was ill-conceived, poorly implemented and ill-explained. To be fair, it would have been hard to explain since it was not the product of intelligence and security professionals demanding change, but rather policy, political and ideological personalities close to the president fulfilling a campaign promise to deal with a threat they had overhyped.

The damage from President Trump’s order on immigration and refugees continues to compound, now escalating into a conflict with the judicial branch. There’s enough bad behavior and blame to go around, but Mr. Trump didn’t need to court this altercation. On Friday federal Judge James Robart in Seattle issued a nationwide temporary restraining order (TRO) on Mr. Trump’s suspension of U.S. entry for migrants from seven countries associated with terrorism risks.

I had intended to use this space to detail how the chaotic events of the past week had persuaded President Trump to put into practice a more rigorous process to avoid calamities like last week’s immigration executive order. But that subject will have to wait for another day, since the 45th president decided to use Twitter this weekend to repeatedly question the legitimacy of a sitting federal judge.

Among the many terrifying questions that Donald Trump’s presidency poses is this: How do you oppose an indecent leader while still behaving decently yourself? When it comes to the habits of deference extended to previous presidents, I’m fine with breaking the rules.

Research Reports and Polling

Americans’ first impressions of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch tilt positive, and a plurality say the Senate ought to vote to confirm President Donald Trump’s selection to replace Justice Antonin Scalia, according to a new CNN/ORC poll. Overall, 49% say the Senate should vote to confirm Gorsuch, who is a federal judge.